The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1887-11-01
A RAKING CRITICISM.
A Historian Reviews General
Sherman'S Memoirs,
AND HE GIVES A CANDID OPINION,

1iA'D AiL Va n S1lNOlD vi lA'lONS
The following criticism of General Sherman
is made by II. II. Bancroft in his Popular Tri-
bunals. cat the request of Justice Field, Of
the United States supreme court, General
Sherman wrote from st. Louis, the 25th of
February, 1863 a letter detailing his California
experience of 1856, which was published in the
Overland Monthly of February 1874 and re-
produced in substance in his Memoirs This
document abounds in incongruities and mis-
statements, few of which L win point outs
Among other things, he asserted that without
standing army the American people would
become a mob, which language many of his
best friends would dissent from. Surely il
General Sherman had considered for moment
he never would have placed free people in
the anomalous position of holding over them
selves guard of hired soldiers to keep them
selves from instruction! Least of all do the
American people require so to keep them
selves. Was it a mob General Sherman led
through Georgia? Do the transactions of the
vigilance committee of 1856, as recorded in
these pages, read like the doings of a mob2
"He states further that James King, of VIII
liam, turned against his old associates when
he exposed the rascality of j. C. Woods, and
Adams and company, and against Woods es-
pecially, wholly public clamor became alarmed
for his personal safety and escaped the coun-
try Now, no one knew better than Sherman
that King was single-minded man and Wooda
trickster. Ii circumstances should throw
the general unwittingly among thieves would
he call it turning against his old associates
when he exposed them? Besides, who over
heard OF an honest man in America becoming
alarmed for his personal safety and escaping
country to get away from newspaper? Again,
he attirms "a war grew up between these two
evening papers and their editors, King and
| Casey This is not true. There never
was war between the papers. King
| exposed Casey for stutfing the ballot-box which
made him supervisor. He never cared fig
| for Casey or his paper. Three lines after,
| Sherman says: "King sent to New York and
prepared the record of a case in which Casey
| had been convicted of robbing the room of his
mistress. King did nothing of the kind. A
| member of Casey's own party, with whom he
| had quarrelled and exchanged pistol shots at
primary election, procured the evidence against
| Casey as we have seen. Sherman goes on to
| say that "&ing treated him rudely," as if that
excused Casey for killing him. If it did not,
| it being "no unusual thing at that time" for
| one man to shoot another, surely would excul-
| pate him. casey then told him he would
| shoot him on sight" Casey told him nothing
of the kind; there were two listeners to the
| conversation in the adjoining room, and we
know what King said. King Started for his
| dwelling on Stockton street." continues this
veracious writer Mr.. King lived on the cor
| ner of Mason and Pacific streets. Next are
| three miSstatements in single short sentence:
Several people who happened to be near ran
| up, caught and carried him." He was
not carried-'into the office of Wells, Fargo 81
! Cot was the Pacific Express company
and laid him on the counter Mr.. King was
| never put upon the coulter at all. The news
paper press, he says, all but the Herald be
| came in the highest degree int1ammatory, and
| drowned all reason and argument. That is to
| say all reason and argument OF the Sherman
order. All the people, all the newspapers were
fNO1c w 1xrIca Il iDr
next day, Friday, L think and his funeral was
fixed for the Sunday following Mr.. King
died on Tuesday and was buried on
Thursday. He makes the execution of
day of their seizure, within the
hour, almost, that they were taken from the
jail, when there was an interval of four days.
Everybody supposed that when this funeral
| was over the matter was at an end but to our
surprise the vigilance committee maintained
its organization.' Everybody was Sherman,
johnson and Garrison. while the better ele-
ments Of society were at work intent on their
own personal affairs the general goes on to
say, the idler and vagabond sought the power
| in existence for an easy support, and through
the vigilance committee they became what our
ward politicians are at all times. Even Sydney
| convicts became judges and constables, and sent
around San Francisco their absurd writs,
| with big, all-seein9 eye impressed thereon as
| their great SEAL That is a falsehood; and
cannot see, even though uttered by a general
| wise than wilful and malicious. This went on
from month to month, and none OF us knew
who was our king, whether the pack of fell
lows who sat at midnight on Front street, etc.
| 1t not Front street, but Sacramento street;
and as if this were not bungling the locality
| enough, in his memoirs he calls it Clay street.
| Now, is General Sherman true, manly honest?
Does he mean what he says when he stig-
matiZeS the committee thus. The fact
was never questioned that they were
San Franciscos best men. Sherman, as
| banker, knew them to be, as class, infinitely
| better men than those OF his party. Is 1t hon
| orable, is it gentlemanly, is it decent for him
| to employ such terms in speaking of such menu
| In day or two after this'-it was the same
day-'Judge Ferry, of the supreme court,
made the writ commanding the sheriff to
| bring before him the body of Moloney.' Bill
| Mulligan was the man. This writ was put
| into the hands of deputy, who tried to enter
| the rooms of the vigilance committee on Front
| street Sacramento street, but was kicked OUT
! He was courteously invited to enter, and did
| enter, and was not kicked out. Besides, how
should a man be kicked out of a place which
| he tried to enter and could not?
'Thus the letter goes on to the end. The
| miSStatementS may, some OF them, appear
! trivial, but in this connection they are not so.
| Sherman has made statements impeaching the
| integrity of California's purest and best citi-
| zens, statements which are either true or false
! and which were made either Willingly or
willingly. To say the least, the assertions OF
one so lax in language should be taken with
allowance. The general is popular in Califor-
! MIA as in other states, and his friends are dis
posed to pass his random remarks charitably,
| as the harmless off-hand way of the soldier.
! But although entertain personally none but
! the most kindly sentiments toward him, and
have great respect for his military success, I
| can speak of him in this connection only as he
| is, and that according to my best Judgment.
So Judging, General Sherman in this letter is
either prejudiced, ignorant or false, in either
of which event writing is no credit to him."
|
| The Pride of the Southern Planter and the
| Blue Ribbon.
| The great Piedmont exposition is over and the
| many thousands that were there witnessed the
| grandest show ever gotten up in the south in so
short time, In Machinery hall was seen truly the
| pride of the southern planter which have become
the leading farm implements in the cotton states,
| well known in the south as the Johnson Combina-
ton Flows, manufactured by h. A. Johnson & CO.,
| Atlanta, Ga. of course these pows, they have
always DONE carried of the first premium, and as
! the ju iges remarked "tie several blue ribbons in
| different places on these plows." We know what
they will DO These plows may well be termed the